relantel wrote:As for the just before the white wreck of the 24/15 - looked equal blame there. I don't know what the hell Bowyer was doing that down low on the apron when 24 had already been down there to give way to the lead lap car (Logano). Sure Gordon had intent, but Bowyer sunk himself there, coming back up to the track at a spot the 24 already was at. Not condoning Gordon's intent, but after Martinsville, etc., hard to fault him for his frustration.

I have to disagree with you there. Bowyer's spotter told Bowyer the 24 was waiting for him. Gordon wasn't racing in a lane, he was trying to get Bowyer to go high so that he could turn into him. You can see it from the 15 camera. Bowyer tried to go as low as possible (He's turning left the whole time) because he thought it was his only hope to avoid the wreck. Total crap move on the 24 and he ruined Bowyer's shot at #2 in points, his lock on #3, and a good day by the #20. If Kyle or Kurt Busch would have done that (and there's a reason, of course), you would have seen the NASCAR apocalypse.

Also interestingly, when KyBu too the inside lane on the restart Denny went "Nooo, what are you doing?" (they had been working together to get a lead on the field). Darien responded, "we tried to tell [the 18 team]." Then when Harvick took the lead on the outside, Denny said "[Kyle] was so afraid the 29 would wreck him, he took the inside---that was dumb."

The worry among insiders is that Nascar may have experienced its heyday in the early 2000s, the way men's tennis did in the 80s and Indy car racing did in the 70s. In a bid to grow roots beyond the South, Nascar a decade ago expanded aggressively, lengthening the season and opening new tracks. But no sooner did Nascar move races to California and Kansas than fan enthusiasm cooled, even at classic tracks such as Martinsville.

Mars, Inc., the company responsible for manufacturing M&M’s, has been a NASCAR sponsor for over 20 years, which is one of the longest standing partnerships within the sport. It takes a lot of goodwill and success for a brand to stay connected to any one sport for such a vast amount of time. The proof may be found in the raw data, which NASCAR has provided to Forbes.com in an effort to showcase the value of its longtime partner in Mars, Inc. (specifically M&M’s).

Perhaps the most impressive statistic produced by NASCAR (and measured by Mars, Inc. tracking data) is that Mars, Inc. receives an impressive 4-to-1 return on investment from their sponsorship in NASCAR. Further analysis reveals that M&M’s is the 4th most recognized brand in NASCAR with a 72% brand loyalty over competitors and that sponsorships effectively create a 5th season of sales for Mars, Inc., which is on par with the size of Mars North America Christmas selling season.

Given that TV revenue is clearly more important to the sport than attendance, I have no idea why they aren't trying to improve that -- by going to tracks like Iowa and Montreal -- and worrying less about their unrelenting loyalty to ISC and SMI that results in 2 races per year exceedingly boring tracks like Pocono, Kansas, and Michigan. The loss of Montreal in the NNS is a travesty.

I'm close to a diehard fan, and I know I can miss any race at a track greater than 1.5 miles. If they added 5 tracks or so (never going to happen), the variety would keep me watching each week. On this point, huge kudos to bringing the trucks to Eldora; that's going to be exciting.

Truck finale with fireworks late. Championship race was down to 1 point with 5 laps to go, when a team car to the point leader got into the 2nd place car in points (bad racing deal - the 4 probably took it too deep, but the 3 pinched down tight), racing for the 2nd spot behind Kyle Busch. They red flag it, but the 3 of Dillon falls to 4th in points, allowing the 31 of Buescher to cruise to the title over the 17 of Peters.

during the green-white-checker, Kyle Busch gets out to a huge lead, but the 33 of Cale Gale (Eddie Sharp Racing in 2012, was a KHI truck last year) gets inside going into turn 1 the final time. Kyle has slight edge down backstretch, but gives Gale the inside in 3 and 4. They came to the line very similar to the famous Kurt Busch/Ricky Craven finish at Darlington in 2003 - not quite as close, but Gale pinched Busch up as Busch tried to pinch down, with final margin about 1 foot. Gale's win was the 9th first time winner this season, and 16 different winners in just 22 races.

For 2013, looks like NW series is losing two races, cutting from 35 to 33 races. A shame. They should fill those two dates with return visits to the likes of Myrtle Beach, South Boston, Pikes Peak or IRP

Stenhouse cruises to 2nd straight NW title, which might not be a good thing, as none of the previous 5 who achieved that feat won a cup title. (Ard, Larry Pearson, LaJoie, Earnhardt and Truex) (Not counting those before the 1982 name change, as at least Ned Jarrett, who won series back to back in the 1950s, won two cup titles) (Handy summary doc from NASCAR in 2008 - http://www.nascar.com/news/features/nwi ... index.html - they include pre-1982 in history even as they don't include pre-1982 stats in the history)

Regan Smith gets his first NW series win, in start 101, but racing in the series for the first time in 5 years, in his first race in the JR Motorsports #5 Chevy, where he will be full time in 2013. Rumor has it that Cole Whitt is moving from their 88 to the 7 next year, saving the 88 for Earnhardt's part-time schedule. Unlikely Danica is back with that team. I don't know if Smith's win was an indictment of the other two, or a sign of the progress the team has made since it fired the Eury's a few months ago.

Seems trucks are going dirt at Eldora in 2013, and may well go to Greenville-Pickens, South Boston, and Myrtle Beach in 2014. And they are reducing the minimum age for the Trucks to 16, for tracks less than 1.1mi and road course(s).

They should only do this point stuff to determine 5-10 drivers who get into the one final race. The winner of the race is declared the champion. It would be awesome theater and casual fans would watch it.

DMcGrew wrote:Just booked a hotel and bought tickets for the Daytona 500!! This will be my 3rd trip to Daytona but my first 500. CAN'T WAIT!

Congrats!! How is the view from the upper seats? Can you see the whole track?

I absolutely hated Pocono, but I assume the higher banking at Daytona allows for greater visibility

Yeah you can definitely see the entire track. The other 2 times I've been to Daytona I've always sat in one of the Towers (Petty, Earnhardt, etc). Those seats are super expensive for the 500 though. So we'll be sitting about halfway between the s/f line and turn and around row 20. I'm sure we'll have trouble seeing the cars from the exit of turn 4 to the entrance of pitroad but that's alright I guess. I just want to be there